THE DEPARTMENT of Health has approval in principle a voluntary redundancy package for a number of staff in the Irish Blood Transfusion Service (IBTS).
The Department said last night that it had proposed severance terms of two weeks’ pay per year of service in addition to statutory entitlements.
These are two weeks per year of service subject to a maximum earnings limit of €600 per week. The Department of Health said that overall its severance offer was subject to a cap of one year’s pay.
However it is understood that the offer has been rejected by the trade union Siptu and that the matter has now been referred on to the Labour Relations Commission (LRC).
Informed sources said that the number of staff involved was quite small and that mainly the personnel concerned were drivers and attendants in the blood transfusion service.
However, the move is being watched carefully in the trade union movement as a possible precedent for any voluntary redundancy scheme that may emerge in the wider health service in the weeks ahead.
The Irish Timesrevealed earlier this month that management in the Health Service Executive (HSE) is currently considering plans for a voluntary redundancy scheme for up to 6,000 clerical and administrative staff.
Senior HSE management held preliminary talks on the issue with Minister for Health Mary Harney a fortnight ago.
The new action plan for reform in the health service under the Croke Park agreement, which was drawn up by the Department of Health last week, also confirms that a HSE voluntary redundancy scheme is under consideration.
Any voluntary redundancy proposal put forward by the HSE would ultimately have to be approved by the Government.